A Month of Inspiration: The TI-83 Calculator

Jan 12, 2012 • substantial

We’re excited about the new year so for the month of January we’re posting a series of all manner of things that motivate and inspire us.

Pre-calculus was a blur of new concepts but it also meant the first time we were actively encouraged to use calculators. Having that as a platform meant we could also find other ways to use the device (with teachers none the wiser!). As Shaun recalls, it was a great beginners programming platform:
"Programming Ti calculators was a blast. High School pre-calc was all about using matrices to animate objects on the screen. I made a fun Pong clone." He's certainly not alone in starting out that way.

The TI series of calculators is still available, both in the real world and online as emulators. At this point you can play Gameboy games on them, making pre-calculus even more fun.